Darkest Flame, page 9
part #1 of Dark Kings Series
Despite the Fae and Kings despising each other, they actually agreed on their feelings for humans. They were untrustworthy and destroyed everything they got their hands on.
Well, most of them did, anyway. There were a few humans who were different.
“You’re still here,” Con said in his most condescending voice. “Why?”
Rhi said the first thing that popped into her mind. “Who says I ever came to help you? Did the thought never pop into your thick mind that I might be here to help Denae?”
That made Con frown—and worry. Which is exactly what she wanted. Score one for her!
Rhi walked out of the office, not surprised to find Kellan on her heels.
“Are you really here to help Denae?” he asked as they walked down the hall.
She shook her head. “I came because I wanted to alert all of you about what I felt. I probably should’ve come sooner. It’s just…”
“I know,” he said into her silence. “We could’ve been alerted to the fact MI5 had executed a secret mission on our land. And in my cave.”
“Ah. So that’s why you’re awake.” Then the realization about what he’d said settled in her mind. “They went to your cave? Why?”
“It’s something we all want to know. Denae was set up by her partner and they fought. She killed him, but he managed to wound her.”
“And you brought her to the manor.” Rhi rubbed her temple. “MI5 doesn’t have magic, Kell. How does any of this fit?”
“We doona know, but we want to make sure they doona succeed in whatever they’re planning.”
“And they’ll come for Denae.”
“Aye.”
“What is the plan?”
Kellan stopped and glanced at a door down the hall. “She’s requested a new identity so MI5 can no’ track her. She also knows what we are.”
Rhi’s eyes grew large as she halted. “Con let you show her?”
“Con is the one who showed her.”
She hooked her thumbs in her belt loops. “He’s going to use Guy to wipe her memories, isn’t he?”
“He is.”
“Then why show her?”
Kellan rubbed his jaw. “All I got from him is that he thought she might be hiding something else and by seeing who we are it might frighten her enough to tell us.”
“That man,” Rhi said with a roll of her eyes.
“Even if MI5 ever finds her, she willna be able to tell them anything after Guy wipes her memories. It’s for the best.”
“Kell, you’ve been asleep for a long time, but do you really believe MI5 would find their operative after endless searching and believe that she doesn’t remember anything?”
“There is no other option.”
“There might be,” she said. There was an abandoned house several miles away. Rhi could keep an eye on it, and as long as Denae stayed there she might live.
“You want to take responsibility?”
The surprise in his voice caused her to glower. “Are you saying I can’t?”
“I’m saying you might get called to your realm. Who would watch Denae then?”
Rhi had to admit he was correct. “True.”
“Why would you offer?” His voice was soft, too much understanding in the words to make her comfortable.
“Temporary insanity. I don’t know. Forget I said anything. Let’s just get her out of Dreagan.”
Kellan walked her to the bedroom door, and when he opened it, Rhi found a beautiful woman with dark hair and a body that would make any man stand up and take notice.
“Denae,” Kellan said. “This is Rhi. She’s a friend.”
Rhi’s smile widened when she noticed how the mortal’s eyes softened when she looked at Kellan.
But it was Kellan’s determination not to look at Denae that made Rhi bite her tongue to keep from laughing.
Men!
CHAPTER TWELVE
Denae could only stare in stunned silence at the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. Her black hair had a blue cast to it, but it was her silver eyes that seemed to swirl that held her.
“Hello,” Rhi said as she walked into the room with a welcoming smile.
Denae blinked and glanced at Kellan to see if he was as awestruck as she was, but he simply leaned against the door frame looking as bored as ever. “Hi,” she finally said.
“Are you ready to blow this joint?” Rhi asked.
Denae was so taken aback by her speech that she chuckled. “Who are you?”
“Well, since you know about the Dragon Kings, I think it’s safe to tell you. I’m Fae.”
She had some retort on the tip of her tongue, but something held Denae back. It could be the fact that she’d seen Con heal her, and then there was the big red dragon she’d witnessed.
But seriously. Could the day get any more surreal?
“A Fae?”
Rhi nodded and flipped her long hair over her shoulder. “We’ve got a long way to go, cookie. I think we best get a move on before your friends at MI5 show up.”
“We?” Kellan said as he pushed away from the door.
Rhi rolled her eyes and faced him. “Not you too, Kell.”
His nostrils flared as he stared at her. “Nay, no’ me, but I’d much rather you be at the dock scouting things out ahead of time.”
“Hmm. You do have a point.” Rhi looked at Denae and winked. “See you soon.”
And just like that, she was gone. Denae stared at the spot Rhi had just been for several seconds before she lifted her gaze to Kellan.
“A Fae?”
“Aye,” he said with a resigned sigh. “There’s a history between the Kings and the Fae, and it isna a good one.”
Denae finished tying the running shoes Cassie had brought up earlier. “And yet she’s here, so it must not have been too bad.”
“It was bad. There was a war.”
“I’m noticing a recurring theme with you Dragon Kings.” It had been said half in jest, but it fell flat.
Kellan’s celadon eyes went hard. “They wanted to take over this realm. We were assigned to be protectors of the humans. Would you have preferred we gave this realm up to the Fae so you could all be slaves to their desires?”
Denae licked her lips. She knew nothing of the Fae, but according to Kellan they were dangerous. So dangerous he let one near her? “Then why is Rhi here if none of you like the Fae?”
“Rhi is … different. She was once a lover to a King. Now come. We must leave.”
Denae was dying to know more, but she hurried out of the room after Kellan, grateful to leave it behind and see more of Dreagan. As soon as she stepped into the corridor to follow Kellan, she noticed the huge paintings lining the walls.
If she didn’t know better she would think she was in a museum. Small lights were fitted over each painting to give just enough illumination so a person could take it all in.
Although they were in a hurry, she found her steps slowing to look at every picture. It wasn’t until they were nearly to the stairs that her eyes landed upon a picture with a bronze dragon, the scales metallic even in the painting.
Denae saw the two horns extending backward from its forehead before Kellan grabbed her arm and pulled her after him.
“I wasn’t done looking,” she stated.
“Would you rather look at the paintings or live?”
Well, when he put it that way, of course she wanted to live. But the bronze dragon had been Kellan. She knew it. And she wanted another look.
Denae’s hand landed on the banister, and as she walked down the stairs she got to see more of the manor—and more dragons. They were everywhere. Her favorites were the metal dragons extending from the wall where the dragon’s claw held the lights.
It wasn’t until she reached the bottom of the stairs that she saw the carved dragon newel post and paused. She ran her finger over the etched teeth of the dragon.
She turned her head to Kellan. “How can anyone walk into this place and not realize what all of you are?”
“People see what they want to see. Few pay that close attention. Then there is the fact that very few ever see the inside of the manor.”
“I did.”
His hand dropped from her arm and their fingers brushed, sending a jolt of longing and desire roaring through her. Her skin heated, making her all too aware of the very virile, very handsome man beside her.
“You were dying,” he said as his gaze met hers.
“Con could’ve healed me in the cave. Why bring me here?”
Kellan didn’t look away, but there was a subtle shift about him, as if he were trying to come up with a suitable answer.
“Don’t,” she said as he was about to answer. “If you’re going to lie, I’d rather you not answer me at all.”
“Have I lied to you yet?” he asked softly. Too softly.
Denae wanted to back away, but the steps and banister blocked her. Kellan’s voice was mellow, but in his eyes she saw anger. “Not that I know of.”
“Have I mistreated you?”
“No.”
“Have you suffered here?”
“Just the opposite.”
He took a step closer until their bodies brushed. “Then why do you think I would lie to you now?”
Denae was having a hard time concentrating with him so close. Especially when all she wanted to do was touch him, to run her hands over his chest and feel the heat of him, the strength of his muscles. To shove her fingers into the long, glorious length of his caramel-colored hair.
“I could’ve been questioned in the cave after Con healed me. I was brought here to make me feel safe, and so that I’d let my guard down. Y’all wanted me to trust you. So when I was killed, I wouldn’t see it coming.”
His face lowered to hers until their noses were almost touching. “I give you my word that we doona plan your death.”
Denae found herself leaning into him, his magnetism, his unmistakable allure too great to resist. Her body was a riot of pulsing need, one that only Kellan could quench. If he wanted her.
Which he didn’t.
Kellan hadn’t intended to get so close to Denae. Her words angered him, but that was no excuse. He knew to keep his distance from her.
They stood with their bodies grazing, their faces so close he could move just a fraction and kiss her. At the thought, Kellan lowered his eyes to her full lips and bit back a moan.
She had the most amazing lips, as if she had been crafted to bring men to their knees with that mouth alone.
He longed to taste her, to sample her lips at his leisure. A slow, wet kiss that went on and on as their passion built. But he wouldn’t stop at her mouth. He wanted to pull her close and feel her tempting curves again, to run his fingers along her long throat and watch her silky skin rise with goose bumps.
“The car is waiting,” Kellan said and hastily took a step back before he did something stupid and kissed her.
“Of course.”
He put his hand on the small of her back and escorted her to the foyer, inwardly smiling all the while. Because he had seen her desire, the yearning reflected in her whisky-colored eyes.
A black Range Rover Sport waited for them outside. Kellan walked beside her. “There is a man inside, a friend to Dreagan. He works for MI5 and is here to help.”
She stopped in her tracks and looked up at him with startled eyes. “No. He can’t be trusted. No one from MI5 can be.”
“We trust him,” Kellan said as he faced her. “Henry is a good man. He risked a lot by getting to Dreagan as well as learning what he could of your mission.”
He waited as Denae looked nervously from the SUV to the open field. She was alarmed and alert, as anyone in her position would be. If it came down to it, he’d forcefully put her in the vehicle, but he hoped he wouldn’t have to.
“How do you know you can trust him?”
“He’s proven himself. We’ve healed you and shown you who we are. Now we are trying to get you away from here so MI5 doesna catch you. Shall we debate this more or leave?”
Her wariness was something he recognized and understood. He didn’t want to connect with her that way, but there was no denying what he saw.
“I don’t want to die.”
“I willna let you,” he said and opened the back passenger door.
Once Denae had climbed in, he closed the door and walked around the other side to get in the backseat. He gave a nod to Banan and Henry.
Henry turned around in the seat and held out his hand to Denae. “Nice to see you alive. I’m Henry North.”
“Henry,” Denae said with a small, nervous smile. Whatever reservations she had vanished. Henry was known throughout MI5 as a stand-up guy, one that could be trusted implicitly. “I know that name. You’re renowned throughout MI5.”
He chuckled. “More like infamous, I’m sure.”
“What are you doing here?” Denae asked as she glanced at Kellan.
Banan started the SUV and put it in drive as he said, “He’s here in case we run into problems.”
“He means MI5 operatives,” Denae said. Her lips compressed tightly.
“I doubt I’m even a part of the company anymore since I left the office last night,” Henry said as he sat forward and buckled his seat belt. “I found out the truth about your mission, Denae. Matt might have said he was to wound you to use you as bait, but they wanted you dead regardless.”
Though Kellan knew she had learned to control her emotions and reactions, Henry’s words still upset her. She was motionless except for her hand that rested on her leg where she was rubbing her thumbnail back and forth.
“My superiors know what happened,” Henry continued. “They had big plans for you, but a few—namely those running your department—had other ideas.”
“MI5 should do some housecleaning,” Banan stated as he drove out of Dreagan over rough terrain, off-roading.
Henry chuckled. “They should, but they don’t always do as expected. The satellite office in Inverness will have already sent their people here. Are you sure they won’t know where we’re going?”
Kellan grabbed the back of Henry’s seat when Banan took them over terrain filled with large rocks. “They can try to follow us.”
“I know Jane isna happy I’m no’ with her, and if any of you tell her how much fun I’m having, I’ll make you pay,” Banan said, a wide smile on his face.
Denae put her hand on the window to prevent her head from slamming into it as the Range Rover crawled over the rocks. “There’s nothing like danger to make a man smile.”
“You’ve been in plenty of danger,” Henry said as he glanced at her over his shoulder.
She laughed, the sound shooting straight to Kellan’s cock and making him bite the inside of his mouth so as not to release a moan.
“Danger has become a way of life.”
Her statement had Kellan wondering just how many times her life had been on the line, and why she continued to put it there. But as he looked at her, it wasn’t the cowering female clutching his arm that he expected.
It was a woman who looked her enemies in the eye and figured out how to best them. She was capable, adept, skilled, and clever.
He might worry if he thought for an instant that he would give in to her. No matter how great the temptation was, he wouldn’t bend. Not with all he had been through with the humans.
Kellan tried to find the hate that always came so easily when he thought of the mortals, and when he did, it seemed … less than before.
Which couldn’t be right. Humans were liars, thieves, and murderers. They raped the land without a second thought to the future or consequences. They fought over land and thrones like vultures fighting over a carcass.
Why the humans lived and the dragons were gone was a question Kellan would never understand.
Suddenly, Denae’s eyes turned to him and her smile died, the light going out of her beautiful whisky eyes. He didn’t want to think them pretty, but he couldn’t stop himself.
“What is it?” she whispered.
Kellan looked away, but her gaze lingered. “Nothing,” he said.
“Liar.”
“Look out!” Banan called as they descended over the hill.
Denae flew forward, her seat belt the only thing stopping her from crashing into Banan’s seat. The SUV tilted precariously to the right, causing her body to be tossed right at Kellan.
He grabbed her without thinking and held her tight. Then he made the mistake of looking into her eyes.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Denae reached up without thought and touched Kellan’s cheek. The surprise that flared in his eyes caused her body to smolder.
Before she could gather the courage to kiss him, Kellan sat her up and turned his head out his window. When she faced forward, her gaze clashed with Banan’s as he looked at her through the rearview mirror.
A glance behind her showed the cluster of rocks that had caused the commotion as they sped across the land.
Denae didn’t know what it was about Kellan that triggered her heart to beat faster or why she was drawn to him in ways she couldn’t begin to discern. All she knew was that she wanted his arms around her, wanted his lips on hers.
She didn’t understand why his appeal robbed her of thought and words, or why the fact his lips didn’t curve upward made her want to do crazy things just to see if she could get him to crack a smile.
The ride continued in silence for the next hour as Banan took them over increasingly more dangerous terrain. Every once in a while either Kellan or Banan would look at the skies.
It didn’t take her long to realize they were looking for dragons. Denae could only imagine how easily a dragon could take out a chopper or plane with a single swipe of a paw.
“We’re almost to the road,” Banan said.
Five minutes later he slammed on the breaks when they reached a small grove of trees, causing all of them to fly forward. The seat belt dug into her chest for the second time that day.
“What is it?” Henry asked.
Kellan didn’t say a word as he opened his door and stepped out of the vehicle. It was when he closed the door softly behind him that Denae knew he was going after something in the trees.
